Four days. youth artists. Infinite creativity.
Join us AT GraffLab, happening June 14-17, 2027
Whether you’ve never touched a spray can or you’ve been filling sketchbooks for years, GraffLab is where you’ll learn the craft, history, and practice of street art from working artists, in a legal, supportive space. Ready to make your mark?
Thanks to support from the City of Portland, we’re offering 10 free scholarship spots for teens in neighborhoods affected by gun violence.
All YOUTH AGES 13-17 are welcome to apply!
ABOUT GRAFFLAB
GraffLab 2026 brought fifteen promising young artists into Portland’s Central Eastside Mural District to learn about street art, its history, and the practice of public art directly from local professional artists. GraffLab kicked off with a tour of the Mural District led by Executive Director Tiffany Conklin. Teens explored work by local and visiting artists and discussed placemaking, third places, and the intention behind public art.
Each day opened with a short presentation, followed by hands-on activities led by working artists that helped teens build their skills lesson by lesson. On day 3, youth drew on what they had learned to refine their creative voice and start crafting their own marks. On the last day, a massive new mural came to life. Each teen created their own letterform and filled the space with techniques they’d practiced all week. It was amazing to see them apply their new skills so quickly and creatively.
LEARNING FROM WORKING ARTISTS
Artist Devin Finley
Artist Galen Malcolm
Lead instruction was provided by veteran artist Devin Finley, who taught “Can Control 101,” covering line weights, dot sizes, shading, blending, and layering. Board Member Galen Malcolm assisted throughout and taught “Style Writing” and “Letterform Basics.” Alongside these foundational classes, guest artists Nia Musiba, RX Skulls, and Wokeface shared what life as a working artist looks like and led small-group workshops.
Legendary wheat paste and sticker artist RX Skulls led a “Linoleum Carving & Block Printing” workshop, where teens printed custom symbols onto blackbooks and sticker sheets using the same technique behind RX’s classic skull graphics.
Nia Musiba led a “Bucket & Roller Fills” workshop, where teens learned basic mural techniques by filling in the letters of “Portland Street Art Alliance” for a mini mural.
Illustrator and merch wizard Wokeface closed out the week of workshops by sharing her journey from street artist to entrepreneur, and led a workshop where teens created wood art inspired by characters and personas they’d developed during the week. Every teen went home with a swag bag of Wokeface goodies.
““It’s a privilege to have a big chunk of time with young people who are interested in street art and want to throw their hat in the ring. I thoroughly enjoyed sharing my experiences and advice with them.” ”
INVESTING IN THE NEXT GENERATION
At PSAA, we don’t just support working artists, we also educate and uplift the next generation. Programs like GraffLab are essential to the creative growth of our community. As part of our commitment to lifting all creative voices, over half of GraffLab students attended on scholarship.
““GraffLab was an amazing opportunity for aspiring youth like myself. Since starting the GraffLab summer experience with PSAA roughly two years ago, I’ve come quite far in my muralism and writing practices. I’ve gotten amazing job opportunities, such as being an artist for the Rock Star Energy Open event on the downtown Portland waterfront and making murals for Burnside Skatepark, as well as other freelance gigs. But without the guidance of the incredible counselors and staff at PSAA, I wouldn’t be where I am today, nor would I know the history behind my city’s street art and graffiti. I absolutely recommend the program to anyone who has a passion for art, graffiti, muralism, sticker making, block printing, stencil making, or who just wants to try something new!”
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Learning hands-on techniques from working artists gave the teens real-world experience. Participants loved it: 100% reported high overall satisfaction and a desire to keep pursuing street art. The Crew Competition and can control instruction were standout highlights.
We also surveyed parents. 100% rated their teen’s experience as “Excellent” and said they would “Definitely” support their teen joining future PSAA programs. 100% confirmed their teen wants to keep going with street art (75% said “very excited”), and 100% agreed the program connects teens to positive community activities (80% “Strongly agree,” 20% “Agree”). Parents emphasized that GraffLab provides a vital, legal, and inclusive environment for teens to explore graffiti and street art safely under professional guidance, empowering them to contribute positively to the city.
““My teen had such an amazing time at the camp. By the end of the four days, they truly did not want it to end! She was so happy to be a part of the winning design team!””
COMMUNITY THROUGH CREATIVITY
The 2026 GraffLab mural, titled “Paint Does Xist,” is Art Fills the Void in action: shared knowledge, learned technique, and individual expression coming together in one public collaboration. Each artist’s style becomes a letter, and the letters coalesce into one message.
A huge shout-out to those who made GraffLab possible behind the scenes: Saphya Razaqi Lones (GraffLab Program Design and Coordination, 2026, and former participant), Board Member DeAngelo Raines, and Roxana and Daisy (Program Support and Photography, 2026).
GraffLab 2026 Mural
GraffLab 2026 Crew
SUPPORT GRAFFLAB
Over half of GraffLab teens come from under-resourced neighborhoods and attend free of charge, and that’s only possible because of our sponsors, grant funders, and donors. Your gift puts spray cans in hands, artists in front of youth, and new murals on Portland’s walls. We’re also looking for local restaurants to help keep our teens fed and hydrated each day. Your support goes a long way!
GRAFFLAB IS SUPPORTED BY
